Defence Minister Rajnath Singh with TMC’s Sudip Bandyopadhyay leaves after attending an all-party meeting over Operation Sindoor, in New Delhi
| Photo Credit:
Ravi Choudhary
‘Operation Sindoor’ is an ongoing operation. Hence, all details can’t be shared, the government told all the major political parties on Thursday. Meanwhile, the sources said at least 100 terrorists were killed in the operation, which took place during the intervening nights of May 6 and 7.
The Defence Minister Rajnath Singh chaired all party meeting. “Defence Minister informed leaders that this was ongoing operation, hence can’t give technical briefing,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju told media after the meet. The government briefed all political parties on the success of ‘Operation Sindoor‘.
“All the leaders have shown maturity at a time when we are all working together. Everyone has hailed and congratulated the armed forces for Operation Sindoor, and said that we will support the government and armed forces,” Rijiju said. Further, everyone hailed and congratulated the armed forces. Also, they said that they would support the government and armed forces.
“We have received a few suggestions as well. The Defence Minister said we don’t do politics just to form the government but do so for the nation, “ the Parliamentary Affairs Minister said. The meeting was attended by Union Ministers Amit Shah, S Jaishankar, J P Nadda and Nirmala Sitharaman, along with Opposition leaders such as Congress’ Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Trinamool Congress’ Sandip Bandyopadhyay and DMK’s TR Baalu among others.
“Operation Sindoor claimed the lives of at least 100 terrorists. It is difficult to give an exact estimate as the operation is still ongoing and we are still collating the details. India will give a befitting reply if Pakistan attacks,” a source at the meeting quoted Singh as saying in a suo motu statement.
According to sources, the opposition was told that military action, the opposition was told, was “measured, non-escalatory, proportionate, and responsible” and focused on dismantling terrorist infrastructure to deter and pre-empt further attacks. It may be noted that the government maintained it has proofs the Pak deep state was involved in Pahalgam, just as it was in other attacks on India. Islamabad has denied these charges.
Meanwhile, the Congress president and the Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Malikaarjun Kharge, said that the Defence Minister told the meeting that India’s action was only targeted at the terror training camps and not against the army or any civilians. He disclosed that the entire opposition accepted the Defence Minister’s contention that, in view of national security concerns, everything cannot be revealed in the all-party meeting. “We accepted it in the national interest and did not ask any further questions,” he added.
The Congress president disclosed that everyone in the meeting expressed concern over the safety and security of people living in the border areas. He cited incidents of the loss of lives in the Poonch area in Jammu and Kashmir and said that the opposition urged the government that their safety should be a priority. He said the government had assured him that all measures were being taken on that count.
Kharge disclosed that the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, had suggested convening a special session of Parliament where MPs from across the country could send a message of unity and solidarity. He said, however, there was no response from the government. He added that the opposition parties were united and did not express any disagreement with the government.
Published on May 8, 2025